Easter time is fast approaching, and for most of us, that means one thing: Chocolate!

While you might well be looking forward to involving your dog in your celebrations and Easter egg hunts, please remember (and tell the kids!) that chocolate is toxic to dogs and can lead to severe poisoning.

As we all know, our canine family members are very smart. Their sense of smell may be as much as 100 times better than ours. Besides being able to discriminate between different smells, a dog has a phenomenal olfactory memory – they can remember smells long after being exposed to the original odor. That, coupled with their super-human hearing, explains why your pooch seems to appear from nowhere as soon as you start to tear the candy wrapper!

So be careful where you hide you chocolate stash! My friend once put hers under a beautifully decorated ‘Easter tree’ which ended up with an emergency trip to the vet, after their appropriately named hound ‘Snicker’ tucked into the whole family’s chocolate eggs!

While some dogs will get away with eating chocolate unscathed, it’s just not worth the risk. In the unfortunate event that they do manage to get their paws on a large portion of this forbidden candy, please seek the guidance of a vet immediately.

We therefore recommend that you keep some dog-safe treats or canine cookies to hand, so they don’t feel left out of the fun.

Why not try the canine cookie recipe below – you can knock up a batch in about half an hour. CARE: please ensure you use a peanut butter that is safe for pets and don’t end up replacing one poison with another! Look at the peanut butter jar ingredients list and ensure it does NOT contain the low-calorie sweetener xylitol which is extremely toxic to dogs.

PEANUT BUTTER BANANA DOG TREATS

PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES

COOK TIME: 15 MINUTES

TOTAL TIME: 35 MINUTES

All you need is 4 ingredients for these hypoallergenic treats! And the coconut oil makes these so HEALTHY for your pup!

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups old fashioned oats, or more, as needed

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1/4 cup peanut butter (CARE: must not contain xylitol)

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine oats, bananas, peanut butter and coconut oil. Add an additional 2 tablespoons oats at a time just until the dough is no longer sticky.

Working on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough 3-4 times until it comes together.

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness then cut out shapes with a cookie cutter. (For a quick alternative to shape, simply roll the dough into small balls in your hands then flatten each with the palm of your hand or a fork to create small discs ¼ inch thick). Place onto the prepared baking sheet.

Place into oven and bake until the edges are golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.*

Let cool completely.

*Baking time will vary depending on the size and thickness of the treats. Serving size will also vary depending on the desired shapes and cookie cutters used.

Wishing you and your canine companion(s) a very happy Easter!

Helen Broadley and the FidoActive team

You can find out more about FidoActive and their Products on their website: www.fidoactive.com

Fidomeans faithful & loyal– a quality that your dog gives unconditionallyActiveis what we want every dog to be!